Sore, puffy, dry, red eyelids... Help needed, as my pharmascist is the definition of useless!

[onix600]

Apologiies in advance for this crazily long post- perhaps if I had forced my pharmacist to read all of this, he might have actually been helpful.....


For the last few weeks I have been suffering from incredibly sensitive eyes/eyelids which are red, dry and sore, similar to sunburn. I initially thought it was because of some cheap make-up remover wipes that I used to take off my mascara. Although I had been using them for a while, they soon started to sting and burn the area around my eyes whenever I used them. The use of any eye make-up other than mascara would result in a stinging sensation, which varied in terms of severity. Moisturiser and even baby-lotion would burn my skin. Since then however, I have been using some Garnier make-up wipes, made for sensitive skin and the problem seemed to get a bit better, although eyeshadow was still strictly off-limits. But then, last Sunday, my eyes had gone back to their previous state, of being very red and sore. I hadn't worn any make-up or used any products on or near my eyes at all on Sunday, so I'm confused as to what caused it to return.

On Monday and Tuesday, several people commented on the state of my eyes, especially the right one, which seemed to be in a worse condition. My eyelids were dry and painful to touch, especially in the corner and it was continuously weeping, until yesterday afternoon when it seemed to heal up to the point where it looked sore, but no longer felt it.

And then today- my awful eyes are worse than ever. While my actual eyes are fine, my eyelids are large,  puffy and as per usual- RED. My left one was expectionally bad, where it was almost hard to keep open. Since the day has gone on, they've somewhat improved, although they remain puffy and red.

One more thing- it may or may not be related but yesterday morning I woke up with a dry, red, sore patch of skin around the left corner of my mouth. When covered up with makeup, it's not so bad, but still notciable and sometimes itchy. I put on some E45 cream today, as I thought this would help, but I think it made it worse as it started stinging and burning almost immediatley. I never had this before, only since the problem has returned to my eyelids. Related, perhaps?

What is going on with my evil, crazy eyes?! I look awful, as I'm very pale and the contrast between my pale face with the random red patch near my mouth and my dry, puffy eyelids makes me resemble something out of a horror film... :( Any ideas of what the problem could be or how to fix it? Or has anyone else suffered similar symptoms? All help would be greatly appreciated. :)

Alex.

[kali111]

I had the same problem off and on for about 6 months.  It got a lot worse with the high heat this summer after I did outdoor activity.  But I followed the Tinactin and Maria Bedescu control cream treatment and within one week I no longer had any redness, flaky skin or itchiness.  I am continuing with just the control cream.  Amazing.

I ordered the control cream online and received LOTS of free items with my order.  A real bonus.

[KimHal]

I am so glad I found this site! I've had the same red, peeling, burning and often tacky eyelids (and crusting up / peeling underneath lower eyelashes) that just started early this past spring. I thought it was seasonal allergies, but no allergy medicine was working and I haven't had problems with allergies in years so I just started looking for answers online after this last flare up. I was captivated by all of the stories and results, and especially by all of the mis-diagnosis by doctors. As I read nearly every post one Saturday morning (200+), I was first relieved I wasn't the only one struggling with this. It has come on about 7-8 times in the last several months, and is so dramatic, I'm embarrassed to even see my husband of 15 years or two kids with no make-up! It was causing extra wrinkles below the eyes and the swelling and sagging of eyelids made me look 15 years older than I am (I'm 41 and have very few fine lines or wrinkles around my eyes (yet!) - and until this condition.  One thing that struck me was the number of posts from people who have been misdiagnosed. There were so many good home remedies to try, but I will admit I was a bit lost on where to start and what to try (without spending a small fortune on every single idea). But then I started short-listing a few suspected causes from other folks that lined up with my personal habits. I drink too much iced tea, for one. I use several Pantene and other shampoos and conditioners that reportedly contain parabins (although I can't tell from the labels of those products what is a parabin). I also have been using a prescription grade acne spot treatment gel due to frequent breakouts (even at my age). And sugar / chocolates / sweets are my nemesis!!  Then I read one or two posts that talked about Candida as a possible cause. This is an overgrowth of the "bad bacteria" that lives in your digestive tract. I had some issues several years ago that doctors could not diagnose, including the same sort of crusting in the corners of my mouth, a recurring sinus infection that lasted 3 months and 4 rounds of antibiotics didn't cure, and a lot of joint pain. After getting really frustrated (the sinus infection was debilitating!) I started researching online and found a Candida support site and symptom test (http://ow.ly/5HvE4), and of course an expensive pro-biotic solution. I ordered the pro-biotic as I had not heard of it before, so had no idea even if it was readily available at the time (now you can find probiotics in pill form at any drug store, and in a variety of food products like yogurt, smoothie drinks and juices). I immediately cut back on starches in my diet, cut out altogether refined white sugar and started taking it. The 3 month sinus infection my GP couldn't cure was almost 100% better in 24 HOURS!!!  My point for elaborating on this story was the clue that so many people are being mis-diagnosed by doctors and put on antibiotics or steroids which are pretty bad for the system (although I realize sometimes needed - I think they are over-prescribed as doctors are quick to throw a script). Western medicine also does not seem to recognize Candida or any of the holistic approaches. I used to think holistic was bunk too, and be careful as there are a million 'snake oil' companies, but it was so clear that diet and this Candida overgrowth was a direct link. So I still had this recent eyelid flare up and was sitting with cold packs on my eyes, then read the posts and put 2 and 2 together. I had fallen off the no sugar wagon earlier in the day, and my eyes were unbearable that night.  The candida support site lists all kinds of skin rashes and eczema as a symptom (see the full list here: http://www.candidasupport.org/symptoms.html), nice because it outlines the various symptoms in men vs. women and even children. The test is here: http://www.candidasupport.org/test_yeast.html.  So the headline from my most recent bout is this: I stopped drinking iced tea the next morning, took 2 probiotic pills, and had no sugar. The night before I treated my eyelids and under bottom lashes with a 50/50 mix of Eucerin and a hydrocortisone cream prescribed for my son's eczema when he was young. When I woke up 1 eye was 100% better, and the other was 90% better. I've since avoided all refined sugar, and applied the eye cream mix twice a day and the 2nd eye is now 100% better. I'm also drinking a probiotic blueberry pomegranate juice once or twice daily. I would encourage everyone to do some research along these lines. The symptoms of Candida are so widespread, it is shocking. I also bought the Organix shampoo and conditioners that are parabin-free. I probably should have done 1 thing at a time to better work the process of elimination, but I will confess I was desperate for a solution (it was my husbands surprise b-day party at a local hotspot, and I didn't really want to look 15 years his senior!). I'm not saying this is the answer for everyone, I agree with an earlier post that the causes could be wide and vast and everyone is different, and each case is complex in its own way. I just encourage everyone to look at their diets (other symptoms they might have but didn't really recognize as real health problem) in addition to environmental / allergies to products.  I hope this post even puts 1 person in the right direction and helps, as I understand how difficult and painful this one is! Good luck!

[Lvtchen41]

I had the same symptoms as a lot of you....red and dry skin around eyes, puffy every morning, one eye worse than the other, and very itchy.  It all started 2 weeks ago and I could not get rid of it.  I went yesterday to Ulta and bought the Mario control cream and noticed a difference right away.  When I woke up this morning the puffiness was almost gone and the redness was all gone.  24 hours later a little dry skin left.  I am assuming it will be gone by tomorrow.

[julietw87]

I have the exact same problem except I have never had any itching involved. I am a 23 y/o and mine began 6 mo ago after I went for a long jog on a really cold day. The next morning my eyelids felt like they were going to crack open. I assumed it was just chapped skin from sweat on a sensitive part of the face in the cold air, but that was december, it's now june and it hasnt gone away! it alternates between redness, puffiness, dry & scaley, and almost healed but it seems that simply keeping the skin moisturized is not going to do the trick. anyways, i have ordered the mario badescu cream and am hoping for permanent relief (although i'm alittle discouraged after reading some of your posts).

[yarrow]

Here are quite a few reviews of Mario Badescu Control Cream:

http://www.makeupalley.com/product/showreview.asp/ItemId=45516/Control_Cream/Mario_Badescu/Moisturizers

This product does contain balsam of Peru, which can be powerfully irritating to some people.

[healthygreen]

Very Good comments, Thank You All!

I have the same symptoms as the rest: very itchy, swollen, flaky, looks 100 yrs old, only one eye (the side I tend to sleep on), have tried numerous prescription/non-prescription creams.

The fungal theory makes sense because it is consistent with how fungus spreads and grows ( I was suspecting this, and reading all comments only confirms my thoughts) :
Fungus starts in a round, red patch. It itches, it causes tissue to swell and scale, gets soothed by cold temperature, each genus proliferates in its specific preferred temperature, and it is very contagious to someone with a stressed immune system (spreads via pets, contact, off of bed-linens, etc). It does not respond to broad-spectrum creams, and actually thrives under the protection of a greasy cream that keeps the oxygen levels low, but needs treatment with a non-greasy cream with an ingredient that is specific for that type of fungus. Also; each year there are numerous new strains of viral and fungal strains, as we spray more and more chemicals and fungicides....to keep things interesting :-)

Why doctors are not trained in proper diagnosis in how to distinguish a fungus from an allergy beats me!!!!; it seems this should be basic 1st year information....

I will try the MB Control Cream, as well as the anti fungal....not ready for the grave yet!